Relationship between morphological and physiological attributes of hop hornbeam seedlings

Most commonly used morphological attributes were correlated with nutrient concentration in order to standardize quality assessment of two-year-old hop hornbeam (Ostrya carpinifolia Scop.) seedlings. Diameter has proven to be the best single morphological indicator of seedling quality given its strong positive correlation with all other observed morphological attributes. Seedling dry mass (shoot and root dry mass) and Dickson Quality Index can be considered the most comprehensive indicators of hop hornbeam seedling quality. However, the measuring of mass is destructive and requires a certain amount of time. The absence of strong correlations between physiological and morphological attributes of two-year old seedlings of hop hornbeam suggests the need for further research. The only significant correlation between physiological and morphological attributes (weak and positive) was recorded between the potassium concentration in root and root collar diameter after the second growing season. [Projekat Ministarstva nauke Republike Srbije, br. 43007: Studying climate change and its influence on the environment: impacts, adaptation and mitigation